1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a machine to reproduce a key onto a key blank and, more particularly, to a key regenerating machine in which the master key is optically analyzed, the appropriate key blank determined, and the bitting pattern regenerated or duplicated onto the key blank.
2. Background Art
It is well known in the art to duplicate keys, referred to as master keys, onto a key blank. The process first involves the operator identifying the master key. This process can be difficult, particularly for someone with little training or experience in the art. For example, there is a choice of over three hundred key blanks to evaluate. Many of the differences between two key blanks can be very subtle, compounding the operator's difficulty. Thus, the possibility exists that even an experienced operator could chose the incorrect key blank to use for duplicating the master key.
Once the key blank is selected onto which the master key is to be reproduced, the pattern of the master key is usually traced while concurrently cutting the key blank. That is, a tracer or feeler gauge, which engages the bitting pattern of the master key, is mechanically linked to a cutting wheel, which cuts the bitting pattern into the key blank. As the tracer moves relative to the blade of the master key, the cutting wheel also moves, thereby duplicating the master key onto the key blank. The duplicate key will not be better than the master key although it could be worse. For example, if the linkage between the tracer and the cutting wheel for the key blank is off by a couple of hundredths of an inch, the duplicate could be inoperable. Also, the key could be worn from use so that the cut depths are no longer within factory specifications. These prior art key duplicating devices produce copies that are, at best, as good as the original and typically introduce duplication errors in the depths and/or spacing of the key bitting.